The Shelf Life of Your New Article or Post? About Three Days, a Survey Says

Well-written articles and blog posts are bread and butter for brands invested in inbound marketing today, but the highly anticpated post has about one week before traffic or interest drops by 90 per cent according to a study conducted by the content provider Boost the News.

The study shows that 74 per cent of articles published online reach its peak on the day of publication, followed by a mere 25 per cent of your target audience on the second day. By the end of one month, the study shows that about 2 per cent of the readership is engaged in an article that may have cost over a thousand dollars to produce.

For B2B marketers, this poses a dilemma and a challenge as the study, which analyzed 30 articles published on different websites and blogs of varying sizes, indicates that an article on a decent blog or other channel can cost from $100 to $1,000 dollars to produce only to have the impact last two or three days and then disappear.

When considering the SEO on long-term traffic, the study indicates there is some increased traffic if an article is reposted on other channels but essentially the cost of producing the article may still be higher than its long term value.

Sponsored editorial articles are a relatively new advertising channel that enables brands to become more a part of the every day conversation. There is at present no industry standard, defined forms of sponsored content or pricing guidelines. Because many brands want to invest in sponsored content, marketers should know that it still may splash and disappear within a few days.

According to the Media Buyer's Guide to Sponsored Content, which studied 474 blogs and 76 publications in the study, 97 per cent of sponsored content on a blog costs $1500 while 82 per cent of publications surveyed charge $1500 or above per article. If for example your Facebook page has less than 25,000 followers, or other factors, the fee should be more in the $300 range a study suggests. Anything significantly higher or lower is probably not priced in line with fair market value.

The Boost the News study urges a long term strategy when considering the cost of content - particularly for sponsored articles. Additionally, a sustainable, long-term promotion strategy remains key.